When Hendrick Motorsports announced Alex Bowman would retire at the end of the 2027 NASCAR Cup Series season, the immediate quesiton was who would replace him in the No. 48 car.
But rumors have already begun to swirl, with several options for Hendrick Motorsports. Some are more obvious than others. However, Jordan Bianchi from The Athletic has revealed that Hendrick is hardcore courting Trackhouse Racing’s Connor Zilisch to take over the ride. That comes after there were rumors the Chevrolet powerhouse would buy out Zilisch’s Trackhouse contract if Bowman were to leave at the end of the 2026 campaign.
Zilisch is in the midst of his rookie campaign with Trackhouse, fielding the No. 88 Chevrolet alongside teammates Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen.
The young phenom is signed with Trackhouse through 2027, which is perfect timing for Hendrick Motorsports.
What Did Justin Marks Say About Connor Zilisch?
Team owner Justin Marks is now on the hot seat to get Zilisch to stay with the team. The entire organization is going through what he says is a massive overhaul in 2026. With many new employees and team leaders, Trackhouse only has one driver, van Gisbergen, in The Chase, and Zilisch has struggled the most of all three drivers as he settles into the Cup Serise.
That’s why he was asked point-blank this week what will happen to Zilisch.
“He’s probably coveted for everybody,” Marks said on “SiriusXM Speedway” with host Dave Moody. “He’s a very talented driver. He’s a very smart young man. He’s got a big career in front of him. And I think for us, we are committed to Connor; Connor is committed to us through the end of 2027. And 2028, although it’ll be here quickly, is a little too far away I think for us to be spending a lot of bandwidth on at the moment. Because what we’re trying to solve for right now is get him the experience, get him comfortable. We’ve got a great relationship with Red Bull and a lot of our other partners on the Chevrolet that he drives, and it’s important for us to be executing on the agreement and the relationship and partnership that we have now.”
Who Else Would Hendrick Motorsports Hire?
Corey Day is at the top of Hendrick’s list, as their only prospect officially signed with the team. They love him so much at Hendrick that they restarted a full-time O’Reilly Auto Parts Series entry to get him experience.
There are more options for Hendrick, as well, if Zilisch somehow or another is convinced to stay at Trackhouse. Among them would be prospect Rajah Caruth, who competes for JR Motorsports with backing from HendrickCars.com or Carson Kvapil, who just won his first O’Reilly race this weekend.
Hendrick has historically signed drivers with experience to join their Cup Series program. If they go this route, Chastain could also be an option, as would Zane Smith or Erik Jones, who have each showed they can compete at the front of the field.
But Zilisch is a highly likeable personality, who also helped bring Red Bull back into NASCAR, in addition to his Chevrolet connection.
Justin Marks Says Trackhouse Racing is ‘Committed’ To Connor Zilisch